Beating-engine.



PATENTED APR. 11, 1905.

J. E. WARREN. BEATING ENGINE.

APPLICATION TILED we. 10, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

1 1 v 1 v u v I v PATENTED APR. 11, 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

[nvenzor Aw QM J. 1:. WARREN.

BEATING ENGINE.

APPLICATION TILED AUG. 10, 1904..

Patented April 11, 1905.

UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

JOHN E. \VARREI, OF \VESTBROOK, MAINE, ASSIGNOR TO SAMUEL I). WARREN AND MORTIMEE B. MASON, OF BOSTON, M.'-\SS.'\(,IIUSI*1I"IS, AND F ISKE \VARREN, OF HARVARD, MASSACHUSETTS, OOPARTNERS AS S. I). TVA RREN 8: COMPANY.

SEATING-ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 787,063, dated April 11, 1905.

Application flied August 10, 1904. Serial No. 220,192.

Be it known that I. .loux ICJVM-nnm, a citizen of-the United States, residing at \Vestbrook, in the county of Cumberland and State of Maine, have invented Improvements in Beatirig-Engines; and I hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact de' scription of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

.\Iy invention relates to engines for reducing and refining paper-stock; and, briefly, my improvements consist of a bed-plate of circular form suitably supported and provided on the outer portion of its upper surface with an annular ring of steel knives and with an inletopening near the center; of a runner, also circular in form. connected with a preferably vertical shaft which usually extends downward through the bed and is supported by a suitable step and bearings and has on its under surface an annular ring of steel knives similar to that in the bed and also wings extending upon its under surface from the shaftopening to the inner edges of the knives; of a curb resting upon the bed-plate. inclosing the runner and provided with a tangential outlet; of a mixing-box with compartments each of which has an inlet and an outlet, the ontlet-compartment of one engine Incoming the inlet-compartment for the succeeding engine; of the arrangement of the knives and the means of spacing and securing them in position, and, liually, of improved means for raising and lowering the shaft, whereby the knives in the runner may be adjusted to those in the bed.

In the drawings, Figure I is a vertical transverse section of the machine in which I have embodied my invention. Fig. 2 is a top plan showing four engines in series, the mixingbox, and connections. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the engine, showing the curb and outlet. Fig. A is a plan of the under side of a fans.

portions, each showing a different method of arranging the knives therein. Fig. 6 is a vertical radial section of the filling of the triangular spaces. Fig. 7 is a vertical radial section of one method of lilling between the knives in the bod-plate and runner. Fig. 8 is another method of lilling between said knives, and Fig. 9 is a side elevation of one of the knives.

Upon suit-able supports 1/ a is fixed the bedplate 6, (see Fig. 1,) which at the center is provided with a circular opening for the reception of the vertical shaft hereinafter described and also at a short distance from the center with an opening (1, which is connected with the inlet-pi pe c. An annular space about the edge of the bed-plate is formed by the metallic rings ff one on the outer and one on the inner edge of said annular space-each of said rings having dogs 1/ on the opposing faces. Above the. bed-plate and substantially of the same diameter is a runner which is provided also with a central opening for the reception of said shaft and, in like manner with the bed-plate, with an annular space near the edge. The central portion of the runner is elevated, thus forming with the bed-plate a central chamber. At intervals upon the under side of the runner in the space between the opening for the shaft and the inner edge of the annularspace are located the wings /I /L. The runner is supported by a vertical shaft 1', which is provided with a sleeve j, which rests upon the central portion of the bcd-plate, while the shaft is supported upon the stop l', which is provided with a screw engaging the beveled gear in, which in turn meshes with the beveled gear 12 on the hori zontal shaft 0, on the other end of which is a beveled gear 1), which meshes with the beveled gear 1 on the vertical shaft r, which is surmounted by the hand-wheel a. The shaft is also provided just above the step with a wheel or pulley f or similar means, whereby power may be communicated to the shaft. The runner is surrounded by a curb a, which is-tightly connected with the bed-plate. The curb is provided with a tangential opening 20, which serves as the outlet of the engine and is connected with the pipe 18. (See Fig. 3.) The annular spaces in the runner and in the bed-plate are supplied with knives which are separated to a greater or less extent by filling or separating pieces of wood or other material, .the arrangement and character of the knives and separating-pieces in the runner varying from those in the bed-plate, as will be more fully explained, and also in both as the nature of the work to be done by the engine varies.

In Fig. 4c is illustrated the arrangement of the knives in the runner. The knives 1 1 consist of plates of steel, substantially as shown 2 2, (see Fig. 4,) which are ordinarily of wood,

but may be made of other material. These pieces gradually diminish in width toward the center of the runner and are provided with gains at either end similar to those of the knives. The knives and filling-pieces are inserted in the annular space of the runner alternately and are held closely together by means of wedge-shaped keys 3 3, which are made use of at intervals. The knives in the runner are not, however, radially placed; but each is tangential, or substantially so, to a circle circumscribed about the center of the runnersay with the circumference of the shaft The arrangement of the knives in the bed-plate is shown in Fig. 5. The knives in the bed-plate are ordinarily arranged radially, as shown in the middle portion of Fig. 5, and they are separated by filling-pieces inserted and held in the annular spaces in the same manner as are the knives of the runner. As already stated, the filling-pieces 2 2 in the bed-plate may be at the inner ends of considerably less height than the knives which they separate and gradually increase in height from the inner side toward the outside, at which point they reach nearly to the upper edges of the knives, leaving only so much of the knives exposed as may be worn down before chipping. The surfaces of the filling-pieces in the runner may be also inclined in like manner toward the cutting edges of the knives as they approach the circumference; but as the spaces between these knives increase outwardly and, further, as the discharge of the stock is promoted by the centrifugal action of the runner such cutting away or incline of the fillingpieces in the runner is not ordinarily required.

The arrangement and character of the knives, as already noted, varies with the character of the work to be done. If the stock is coarse, the knives in the bed-plate and runner are of greater thickness and disposed at greater intervals. As the stock becomes finer the They are knives are reduced in thickness, as well as the filling or separating pieces, which at the same time are cut away or inclined to a less and less extent for the purpose of decreasing the inlets between the knives. When the knives become so thin that they will not be self-supporting when separated by the wooden filling above described ,(the knives projecting in some places a quarter of an inch, more or less, above such filling,) the knives are set in the bedplate in groups and the knives separated by paper filling of substantially the same height as the knives, the filling wearing away as the knives wear down. (See left-hand portion of Fig. 5.) Each group of such knives has on each side for support a thicker knife. In such case all of the said knives are parallel to each other, only the center knife of each group being radial, and the spaces between the groups of knives are divided into two unequal triangular spaces by means of a diagonal knife 6 of greater length than the others and of suitable thickness, the outer end of said knife 6 being thrown forward in the direction in which the engine revolves. In filling these triangular spaces a solid block of wood or other material of suitable thickness 7, having gains or notches in like manner with the ordinary filling described above, is provided and overlaid with thinner pieces 8 of the same shape, which in turn are surmounted with a metal casting 9, so formed as to support the knives on either side of the triangular space and also of such shape as to form a shallow gutter for the inflow and outflow of the stock. I prefer to construct the plate of substantially the same thickness except at the apex and sides, where it inclines somewhat sharply upward, as seen in Fig. 6; but it may be made to increase gradually in thickness from the base to the apex, at which point it is somewhat below the edges of the knives. The metal plate and thin pieces of wood are secured by screws passing through them into the solid block. When chipping is required, it is necessary only to remove the screws, take off the plate, one of the thin layers of wood, and replace the plate and screws as before.

The mixing-box, which is illustrated in Fig. 2, consists of a box, preferably of rectangular shape, extending along the side of the engine or sides of the engines. It is divided by means of movable partitions 17 into independent compartments. Each of these compartments is provided with an inlet and an outlet, each outlet being controlled by a valve or gate 15 and each inlet by a valve or gate 16.

The operation of the device, confining myself to a single engine, is as follows: The proximity of the runner to the bed-plate having been suitably adjusted by means of the handwheel 8, the stock to be treated is admitted to a compartment of the mixing-box l0, (referring to Fig. 2,) whence by gravity it enters, through the inlet-port (Z, the space or chamber between the runner and the bed-plate. The runner is now caused to revolve by power applied to the shaft 1' by means of ropes, pullcys,gears, or otherwise. The fans It lb of the runner,aided by the centrifugal action of the knives, force the stock between the knives of the runner and those of the bed-plate, whereby it is exposed to the action of the knives as it passes from the in ner edge to the outer edge of the annular spaces. hen the stock reaches the outside of the annular spaces or passes into the space between the runner and the curb, the eentrifugal force of the runner carries the stock out of the tangential opening 1/1 of the curb, through the pipe lb, connected therewith, into the second compartment 11 (see Fig. 2) of the mixing-box, whence it may be conveyed into another engine, the stulf-ehest, or elsewhere, as desired. hen the triangular spaces 4: 5 are used (see Fig. 5) in the bed-plate, the stock enters the gutter over the triangular space 5, whence itis carried over the knives between it and the triangular space t into the gutter of the triangular space 4, whence the stock is forced out by the centrifugal action of the runner into the space between the curb and the runner, whence it passes into the outlet, as before.

It is my purpose to make use of the engine hereinbefore described not only as a single engine, but also in series, so that to a certain extent the reducingof the stock may be made a continuous process. In Fig. 2 l have illustrated a set of such engines connected with the mixing-box. The engines are the same in construction except that the knives of the runner and bed-plate of each succeeding eugine are liner, as before described. The stock after having been thoroughly mixed by an engine of the llollander or similar type is admitted into the first compartment 10 of the. mixing-box, whence it passes into the first engine, in which the knives are largest and most widely se nu-ated. After treatment in this engine the stock passes into the second compartment ll of the mixing-box, whence it is carried by gravity into the second engine, where the knives are liner and the stock is still further refined, whence it passes into the third compartment 12 of Fig. 2, thence into the next engine, and so on. The process is repeated until the stock has passed through the last engine of the series, whence it is carried from the last compartment of the mixing-box into the machine-chest.

By means of the arrangement of the mixing-box the stock may not only pass in regular order, as above described, through each engine connected with the box, but when desired the partition between any two of the compartments may be removed, the gates or valves controlling the inlets and outlets having been closed. If the gates controlling the outlet and inlet at either end of the new compartment thus formed are opened, the process continues without the stock passing through the engine, which is connected with the compartment by the central openings. Opportunity is thusafforded either to repair the engine, whose outlet and inlet connect with the central openings of the compartment, by chipping the lilling or otherwise or to cutout such engine in case the stock has come from the preceding engine in such condition as not to require treatment by the engine cut out. Such mixing-box also affords an opportunity for the introduction into any compartment of a new component which may require less treatment than those components which have passed through the preceding engine or engines.

The wood filling between the knives may be cut away vertically at the inner end to compensate for the greater width laterally at the outer end, said greater width resulting from the larger diameter of the outer circle, so as to form a passage for the stock of uniform section through the knives, or the inner ends may be cut away in excess of the outer (as already described) to allow a freer inlet for the stock, and such cutting away may be in either bed or runner or in both, as shall be found best adapted to the stock to be treated.

\Vhat 1 claim is l. The combination of a bed and runner each provided with an annular ring of knives, an inlet in the bed, a vertical shaft carrying said runner, a curb surrounding said runner and an outlet in the side or periphery of said curb, substantially as described.

2. The combination of a bed and runner each provided with an annular ring of knives, an inlet in the bed, a vertical shaft carrying said runner, fans upon the under side of the rum ner and a curb surroiuuling said runner having an outlet, substantially as described.

3. 'lhe combination of a bed provided with knives arranged in an annulus about the outer edge and an inlet through said bed. a runner having a similar annulus of knives arranged around the outer edge of the under side, a chamber in the center and a vertical shaft supporting said runner whereby the same may be rotated together with a curb about the runner with an outlet through the side or periphery of said curb, substantially as described.

T. The combination of a bed and runner each provided with an annular ring of knives, an inlet in said bed, a vertical shaft carrying said runner, a curb surrounding said runner and a tangential opening in said curb, substantially as described.

ln a reducing-engine, the combination in the bed-plate orrunnerof steel knives and alternate paper fillings of about equal thickness with said knives, substantially as described.

(5. The combination in the circular bedplate of a reducing-engine of alternate steel kn ives, fillings of substantially equal thickness with said knives, said knives and fillings being arranged in groups and the spaces between each of said groups being divided by a larger and longer diagonal knife extending from corner to corner of said spaces, substantially as described.

7. The combination in the bed-plate of a reducing-engine of knives alternating with fillings of paper of substantially the thickness of said knives arranged in a group and thicker supporting-knives on either side of said group, substantially as described.

8. The combination in the circular bedplate of a reducing-engine of alternate steel knives and paper fillings of substantially equal thickness with said knives, said knives and fillings being arranged in groups, the spaces between each of said groups being divided by a larger and longer diagonal knife extending from corner to corner of said spaces, each of the minor spaces thus formed being provided with gutters, said gutters having raised ends at the apexes of such spaces, substantially as described.

9. The combination in the bed-plate or runner of a reducing-engine of alternate knives and separating-pieces arranged in groups with alternating spaces and knives diagonally dividing such spaces, substantially as described.

10. The combination in the bed-plate or runner of a reducing-engine of groups of knives and alternate separatingpieces, of intermediate spaces, each divided diagonally by a knife, and gutters in the triangular spaces thus formed, said gutters having raised surfaces at their narrower ends or apexes, substantiall y as described.

11. In a reducing-engine, separating orfilling pieces combining a base, thin laminae superimposed thereon and a metallic plate or gutter over all, the said elements being secured together by screws or similar means, substantially as described.

12. The combination of a series of graded beating-engines, having the knives in the first of the series heavier and more widely separated and finer and less widely separated in the succeeding engines for the purpose of beating and refining the stock in one operation, substantially as described.

13. The combination of a series of graded beating-engines having in the first heavier knives and wider separating-pieces and in the succeeding engines finer knives and narrower separating-pieces, the separating-pieces in the first of the series being cut away toward the inlet more largely and in each succeeding engine less for the purpose of providing a freer inlet for the coarser material, substantially as described.

14. The combination of a series of beatingengines each succeeding member of the series having knives finer and less widely disposed and means whereby the product of each antecedent engine may be admitted to the succeeding engine, substantially as described.

15. The combination of a series of beatingengines each succeeding engine being provided with finer and less widely separated knives and a mixing-box having independent compartments, each succeeding compartment being connected with outlet and inlet pipes of two adjacent engines, substantially as described.

16. The combination of a series of graded beating-engines having coarser knives and wider separating-pieces, the latter being cut away more largely toward the inlet, in the first of the series and in the succeeding engines finer knives and separating-pieces more narrow and more nearly parallel with the edges of said knives, together with a continuous mixing-box provided with compartments and inlets with suitable valves, substantially as clescribed.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have hereunto set my hand this 8th day of August, A. D. 1904.

JOHN E. WARREN.

In presence of GEO. E. BIRD, A. C. BERRY. 

